Centering bars and columns when no categories or break by are present in Sisense [linux]

The full plugin is attached for download as a zip in this comment.

The full Readme file:

# BarColumnCentering

## Description

The **BarColumnCentering** plugin adjusts the rendering of Sisense bar and column charts to ensure that bar or column labels are centered when the chart contains only Values and no items in the Break By or Categories panels. In this situation, Sisense's default grouping leaves empty slots in each category band, causing misalignment between bars/columns and labels.

This plugin automatically detects applicable charts on dashboard load and disables Highcharts series grouping for them, ensuring each bar or column is drawn in the center of its category.

## Installation

1. **Download and Install the Plugin**

   * Extract the `.zip` archive to the Sisense plugins directory:

     ```
     /opt/sisense/storage/plugins/
     ```
   * Alternatively, navigate to:

     ```
     Admin > System Management > File Management
     ```

     and upload the extracted plugin folder to the `plugins` directory.

2. **Activate**

   * Refresh the Sisense dashboard to apply the changes.

## How It Works

When a dashboard loads, the plugin checks each bar or column chart widget before rendering.
If all of the conditions are met:

* The widget type is either bar or column chart.
* The Break By panel has no items.
* The Categories panel has no items.
* The Values panel exists and contains one or more items.

…the plugin sets the Highcharts `plotOptions.series.grouping` property to `false`. This removes the default per-category grouping behavior, ensuring each bar or column spans the entire category band and aligns with its label.

## Limitations

* Only applies to bar and column chart widgets where the Break By and Categories panels are empty and the Values panel contains one or more items.
* Does not affect charts with Break By or Categories panel items present.

The full plugin.json file:

{
    "name": "BarColumnCentering",
    "source": [
        "main.6.js"
    ],
    "style": [],
    "lastUpdate": "2025-09-15T17:12:54.438Z",
    "pluginInfraVersion": 2,
    "isEnabled": true,
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "folderName": "BarColumnCentering"
}

Full main.6.js file:

/**
 * Plugin: BarColumnCentering
 *
 * Purpose:
 * Adjusts the rendering of Sisense bar and column charts so that bars/columns are visually centered
 * when no Categories or Break By panel items are present, and only Values are defined.
 * This is achieved by disabling Highcharts series grouping, ensuring each category band contains
 * a single centered bar or column rather than multiple grouped bars.
 */

/**
 * Checks whether a widget or dashboard model already has a specific event handler attached.
 * Supports both Prism models and dashboard/widget models by inspecting the underlying event structures.
 *
 * @param {Object} model - The widget or dashboard model.
 * @param {string} eventName - The name of the event to check for.
 * @param {Function} handler - The handler function to search for.
 * @returns {boolean} True if the handler is already registered for the event, false otherwise.
 */
function hasEventHandler(model, eventName, handler) {
  var eventHandlers = model.$ngscope // Check if Prism model
    ? ($$get(prism, '$ngscope.$$listeners.' + eventName) || []) // Prism model handler list
    : model.$$eventHandlers(eventName); // Dashboard or widget model handler list

  return eventHandlers.indexOf(handler) >= 0;
}

/**
 * Finds a panel object by its title, ignoring case.
 *
 * @param {Array} panels - The array of panels from widget.metadata.panels.
 * @param {string} title - The panel title to match.
 * @returns {Object|undefined} The matching panel, or undefined if not found.
 */
function findPanelByTitle(panels, title) {
  var normalizedTitle = String(title || '').toLowerCase();
  return panels.find(function (panel) {
    return panel &&
           typeof panel.title === 'string' &&
           panel.title.toLowerCase() === normalizedTitle;
  });
}

/**
 * Event handler for the Highcharts 'beforeviewloaded' event on a widget.
 * Disables series grouping when specific conditions are met to center bars/columns.
 *
 * Conditions for applying the change:
 *  - The widget is a bar chart or column chart.
 *  - The Break By panel exists but has no items, or does not exist at all.
 *  - The Categories panel exists but has no items, or does not exist at all.
 *  - The Values panel exists and contains one or more items.
 *
 * @param {Object} widget - The Sisense widget model.
 * @param {Object} env - The environment object containing Highcharts options.
 */
function onBeforeviewloadedCenter(widget, env) {
  var chartOptions = (env && env.options) ? env.options : {};
  try {
    var panels = (widget.metadata && widget.metadata.panels) || [];

    // Step 1: Determine if the widget is of the correct type
    var isBarOrColumnChart =
      widget.type === 'chart/bar' || widget.type === 'chart/column';

    // Step 2: Retrieve the Break By, Categories, and Values panels
    var breakByPanel    = findPanelByTitle(panels, 'break by');
    var categoriesPanel = findPanelByTitle(panels, 'categories');
    var valuesPanel     = findPanelByTitle(panels, 'values');

    // Step 3: Determine panel contents
    var breakByIsEmpty =
      !breakByPanel || !Array.isArray(breakByPanel.items) || breakByPanel.items.length === 0;

    var categoriesIsEmpty =
      !categoriesPanel || !Array.isArray(categoriesPanel.items) || categoriesPanel.items.length === 0;

    var valuesHasItems =
      !!valuesPanel && Array.isArray(valuesPanel.items) && valuesPanel.items.length > 0;

    // Step 4: Apply grouping change only when all conditions are met
    if (isBarOrColumnChart && breakByIsEmpty && categoriesIsEmpty && valuesHasItems) {
      chartOptions.plotOptions = chartOptions.plotOptions || {};
      chartOptions.plotOptions.series = Object.assign({}, chartOptions.plotOptions.series, {
        grouping: false
      });
    }
  } catch (_) {
    // Do nothing if metadata structure is unexpected
  }
}

/**
 * Registers the beforeviewloadedCenter handler on widgets as they initialize.
 */
prism.on('dashboardloaded', function (e, args) {
  args.dashboard.on('widgetinitialized', function (_, initArgs) {
    var widget = initArgs && initArgs.widget;
    if (!widget || !widget.on) return;

    if (!hasEventHandler(widget, 'beforeviewloaded', onBeforeviewloadedCenter)) {
      widget.on('beforeviewloaded', onBeforeviewloadedCenter);
    }
  });
});